The present invention relates to a lightweight thermal heat transfer apparatus, which provides an efficient thermal conduction path from a thermal source. More specifically, but without limitation, the present invention relates to a lightweight thermal heat transfer apparatus that can function either as a heatsink and/or a heat dissipative fin that can be used in conjunction with electronic equipment.
A heatsink, a heat dissipative fin and/or a thermal heat transfer apparatus is typically, but without limitation, an apparatus which has high thermal conductivity and lowers the temperature as well as draws heat from a thermal source. Typically a heat sink, a heat dissipative fin and/or a thermal heat transfer apparatus dissipates, scatters, disperses heat, or even makes heat disappear. A heatsink, a heat dissipative fin, and/or a thermal heat transfer apparatus also provides a thermal conductive path away from a thermal source.
Heat sinks, heat dissipative fins and/or thermal heat transfer apparatuses are widely used in the electronics industry to provide passive thermal control of electronic components. Aluminum, copper and other metals or metal alloys have been used for these applications. However, as electronic components have decreased in size, power density has increased. These factors have resulted in higher heat dissipation requirements in electronic components than conventional materials and designs can provide. The power levels and power densities of many current electronic designs are limited by the heat dissipative capabilities of their heatsinks, heat dissipative fins and/or thermal heat transfer apparatuses.
For a variety of electronic applications, such as aircraft or aerospace applications, it is highly desirable to minimize the weight of the heatsink, the heat dissipative fin and/or the thermal heat transfer apparatus and maximize its heat dissipative capabilities.
Laminated composites have been used to manufacture heatsinks, heat dissipative fins and/or thermal heat transfer apparatuses. The use of laminated composites, composed of fibers and a matrix material, as heat sinks, heat dissipative fins and/or thermal heat transfer apparatuses has not resulted in as much thermal conductivity as was originally anticipated because the transverse thermal conductivity of these fibers is an order of magnitude less than axial thermal conductivity. Thus there is a requirement for a new thermal heat transfer apparatus that provides a direct thermal path along the fiber axis from the surface of the thermal heat transfer apparatus to its edge. This requirement would provide more thermal conductivity and minimize weight and size of the heatsink, heat dissipative fin and/or thermal heat transfer apparatus.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a lightweight thermal heat transfer apparatus. Information relevant to attempts to address these problems can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,609,586, 4,849,858, 4,867,235, 4,888,247, 5,002,715, 5,111,359, 5,287,248, 5,255,738, 5,224,030, and 5,316,080. (None of these patents are admitted to be prior art with respect to the present invention.) However, each of these references suffers from one of the above listed disadvantages.